ICC releases latest version of DLS system

Wednesday, 3 October 2018 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The International Cricket Council has released the updated version of the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern (DLS) System along with the new ICC Code of Conduct and ICC Playing Conditions.

These came into effect yesterday, when the first ODI between South Africa and Zimbabwe was played in Kimberley.

This is the third version but the second update of the DLS System since its introduction into international cricket in 2014, and has been carried out following a detailed ball-by-ball analysis of scoring patterns, including in the powerplays, in all limited overs internationals played during the previous four years.

This means the current analysis is based on information from 700 ODIs and 428 T20Is, which comprise over 240,000 outcomes of individual deliveries.

The latest analysis has revealed that teams have been able to extend their acceleration patterns for longer periods, and the average scores in ODIs have continued to increase. This means that par score calculations will assume that teams will be able to score a slightly higher proportion of their runs towards the end of an innings.

In finalising the updated version, the scoring patterns between ODI (final 20 overs) and T20 were analysed, as were the scoring patterns between men’s and women’s international matches. The study has confirmed that in both cases, while overall scoring rates are obviously different, wicket-adjusted resource utilisation rates are essentially identical.

As such, it has again been confirmed that a single version of the DLS System is compatible with all formats.